Rough Rider & Related Slipjoints

I don't have any myself, but my friend Chet does. He loves them. Everytime he gets a new one, he brings it to breakfast and we pass it around. Chet uses his knives a lot, and he's happy with them. From what I've seen, I think the fit and finish on them has gatten better in the last few years.
 
They use 440 steel. Don't say what kind, so most likely 440A. It seems to be a good heat treat--they hold a pretty good edge.

And best of all (since many just starting out like to buy them) they come VERY sharp, and ready to use.
 
RR uses 440a stainless and in my opinion they are very good knives and not just because they're inexpensive. The come razor sharp, they hold a good edge and they sharpen easily. And not to start anything here but the Fit and finish beats many of the knives made in the US that cost 10 times more. I have bought and sold 100s of them and NOT ONE has ever come with gaps around the back springs or blades that sit below the the back spring when open. They make many of the classic old time patterns and some great handle jigging in good solid bone as well as a number of modern synthetics that hang in under hard use. This will not be a popular thing to say but I use a well loved brand name US made knife to compare to the RR knives as a sales tool.
The whittler in question came with many flaws in comparison to every RR knife if have handled the difference being $150.00 landed in Canada to $10.00.

I like RR very much, I just wish they would start making some carbon steel slippies.

Best regards

Robin
 
Hi,

Yeah I've been told it's 440A. I've done hardness tests on 4 different ones I own. They all tested at 57/58Rc. And mine have all arrived shaving sharp too.

Dale
 
i have had several,i had a blade break in a small congress but i was putting pressure not much though on it,but the handles look good and sharp they sell here for 10 or less..........
 
Thank you all for your help, I really dont mind 440a and if Im correct i have a few already that use that steel, I do wish though they had some carbon steel models maybe for alittle more, but I'm deffeintly going to get one.
 
I've had and given away 3 of them, well loved by the friends who received them. One guy, I find this funny, won't use his because its too nice!
 
RR's are not cheap, they just have very good value. Good knives for gifts, user's or testing new pattern.
 
The Old Yellow split-back Whittler I own is able to hold its head up amongst much more illustrious knives.They vary, the one I write about is a very good knife.
 
I have a dozen or so Rough Riders, I also have a dozen of the Colts. In my opinion the Colts are 3 times the knife for just a couple bucks more. One nice thing about the RRs is the huge variety of patterns they make. Before spending $75 to $100 on a knife you can see if you like the pattern for just a few bucks.
 
my feel on the chinese knives is that more & more of the american market is going to move in that direction. last summer i predicted that given enough profit the chinese not not only would = american quality they would surpasse it.i usually buy 2 types of knives, one type for certain uses & one particular brand i hope will become a desirable collectible in the future.i do'nt see chinese knives becoming collector types for a long long time [if ever] absintheur has shown some colt [chinese knives ] that are stunning. perhaps if high quality chinese knives in zdp189 & m4 & cpm154 with good heattreats come to u.s. i will buy these knives. i've lived a long time & my feel on collectors of nearly any item is first & foremost Americana. a good case razor or knife will nearly always demand more preminum prices than a good english or good german razor. although the joseph rogers may be a finer product than an old ka-bar razor or knife, the american item will always command higher prices. in general americans love old americana over any other oldie.we all remember what happened to the american auto industry.
 
all of my slippies were american made until a few weeks ago. the rough riders i purchased allowed me to try different styles for about $50. i am very happy with them and will be buying more. and as an added bonus it really sparked an intrest in collecting with my 10yo daughter.(i gave her two bone handled mini-toothpicks) now she cant wait to "earn" some more styles. the 2 rr knives now reside right next to her case baby butterbean and small stockman. she told me today she wants a small green bone canoe next. i think i got her hooked.lol
 
Absintheur said:
I have a dozen or so Rough Riders, I also have a dozen of the Colts. In my opinion the Colts are 3 times the knife for just a couple bucks more. One nice thing about the RRs is the huge variety of patterns they make. Before spending $75 to $100 on a knife you can see if you like the pattern for just a few bucks.
Click to expand...

exactly. i decided that i did not like the tiny toothpick pattern. but fell in love with a canoe and large toothpick. now i basically know what im getting when i look at a case or other brand. (handle and style,size wise)
 
I'm looking to start carrying and collecting traditional slipjoints and recently got a rough rider medium stockman cheap in trade.
I know that it isn't a premium brand, but I was able to get a fairly sharp edge on the blades with a little work.
How does rough rider compare to better brands like case or queen? Is the steel just going to lose an edge quick, or is it something that can be usable?
 
actually i think they are fairly well made. it's easy to criticize any knife really but i have really put this whittler through it's paces:

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it is just now starting to develope a slight side to side wobble on the pen blade which has been used the most.

the 440a steel is very easy to sharpen and way easy to touch up. TBH i think the steel is very workable and overlooked in the search for the next best thing. i really think it's good enough for most of my needs and better than it is given credit for.
i have three RRs. the things that annoy me are the shallow struck nail knicks on one or several blades on each knife. also, RR tends to get slightly thin on some blades and i can flex them too easily and i dought they can take heavey work...especially on this congress.

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walk and talk in my experience is good. not great though the snap is top notch. that said i probably will not buy another. i actually like them as much for the blade steel as anything (i know... i'm suppose to like better steels) and F&F is frankly very good but i can't see them holding up to steady daily use. this is based on a congress, whittler, and trapper. here is a shot of the trapper (love the sawcut scales... the bolsters are a little pimped out for my taste)

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none of these knives give the impression of being built solid or lasting more than a year or two of daily use yet they are nothing to sneeze at... for less than $10 ea. i got to try two new patterns and an excellent working steel. not a bad deal but not an end all either.
 
jfn said:
I'm looking to start carrying and collecting traditional slipjoints and recently got a rough rider medium stockman cheap in trade.
I know that it isn't a premium brand, but I was able to get a fairly sharp edge on the blades with a little work.
How does rough rider compare to better brands like case or queen? Is the steel just going to lose an edge quick, or is it something that can be usable?
Click to expand...

Hi,

I think Rough Riders are a good place to start when you're new to traditional slippies. They offer a dizzying array of patterns with many different scale materials. And as has been mentioned through out this thread, the price allows you to try patterns on to see how well you might like them.

How well do they stack up to more collectible brands? Well, a good Rough Rider can be as good as a Case production model for fit and finish. But brands like Queen, GEC, and the premium models from Case are a definite notch or two better. From quality of the materials used to the final fit and finish.

The blade steel on Rough Rider is 440A. I get perfectly fine use out it for the jobs that slippies normally do. But it certainly doesn't compare to Queens D2, GEC's 1095, or Case's CV.

Give your RR Stockman some use. I think you'll find it a good value for the money,

Dale
 
Well, I ordered three of these Rough Riders tonight. I hope I don't regret it. I could have bought four of them for what it will cost me to get that Case mini Copperhead I'm lusting after. I'll post pictures and my thoughts when they arrive.

People are saying a lot of good things about them. I have to see for myself if they are right.

Ed
 
Sodbuster ? YES, quite a few. some are locking, others not.
PM me if you want a link to an excellent seller who always sells only the best RRs
roland
 
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